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My Cuba Cruise

Balloon Man

By Balloon Man,
in Cuba

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Liz54

Liz54

Posted
Posted

The Cuba Cruise FB page has a picture of the 2 Canadian owners on the new charter plane from Air Transat for those who book air. They seem to be the same people as last year. Hope they were not the guys behaving badly!

 

Here is the link:

https://www.facebook.com/CubaCruiseOfficial

 

Another friend want to join us. Will they let her book into my sister's single occupancy cabin, do you think? Sent to travel agent. We shall see.

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ONT-CA

ONT-CA

Posted
Posted

A tough one Liz54 but I have never seen the person on the left before. However the other gentleman resembles he who insisted on and succeeded in wearing shorts and flip flops to the dining room for diner, completely contrary to the rules. And if so, he was later chastised by Mr. Big in then leaving the theatre and returning wearing trousers. But only he could verify that.

 

Yes, we were obsessed by this group for we had never seen anything like it before and we have been on a lot of cruises.

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zebraprintsky

zebraprintsky

Posted
Posted

4 days till I am in Jamaica and 10 days till the cruise ! I am so anxious and excited

!!

 

Anywhos, I am gonna be booking some excursions this weekend... and I am trying to figure out what one to book for Holgiun. I am going to go with one of the Full Day ones, and I am leaning toward the Cuba Life one. Does anyone have any feedback??

Thanks!!!!!

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retiring soon

retiring soon

Posted
Posted

Hi all!

Zebraprintsky - I think the Cuba Life excursion is a great choice. I did it in Jan. & really enjoyed it . you get to see a lot of different things, the meal was yummy & the scenery beautiful .i met Aaron Coulter from CC UK on that tour so maybe he wrote something about it in his review. Google it.

 

Have a great time with DH

& enjoy the cruise. I'd love to see the look on his face when you tell him!

 

Jo

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zebraprintsky

zebraprintsky

Posted
Posted

thankkk you!!

 

I will book that one then ! I wanted to book one that included horseback riding.. but then this week my hubby made some comment about how horses are dangerous, when I told him I was petting a police horse (what a weirdo), so that made me ax that idea pretty fast as he prob would not even go near a horse. haha.

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retiring soon

retiring soon

Posted
Posted

Hi all!

 

zebraprintsky ~ you're welcome but I made a mistake, the guy I met was Adam Coulter from CC UK, Aaron Saunders is a guy who writes travel pieces.

I'm with your DH about horses, they're lovely to look at but I don't like to be close to them or on them, especially in water!:eek:

Here's Adam's link:

http://blog.cruisecritic.co.uk/index.php/2014/02/07/cubacruise-first-impressions/blog

 

I was looking at shore excursions & other things (interviews) on the Cuba cruise page & notice some of the excursions have changed:(. They don't seem to be offering the Havana night walk which is what I wanted to take & they now have a Buena Vista Social Club one which may be of interest to you burm. A lot of the people they interviewed really seemed to like Santiago de Cuba.

 

I also noticed that the figures for cabins available seems strange since there are now more cabins available on my sailing than before.:confused:

 

Ron ~ did you witness the entry to all the Cuban ports? Did you have a favourite? The only one I saw was Santiago as it was later than scheduled

but I thought it was lovely. Are any others worth getting up early for?

 

Have a great weekend.

 

~ Jo ~ :)

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ONT-CA

ONT-CA

Posted
Posted (edited)

Ron ~ did you witness the entry to all the Cuban ports? Did you have a favourite? The only one I saw was Santiago as it was later than scheduled but I thought it was lovely. Are any others worth getting up early for?

Have a great weekend. ~ Jo ~ :)

 

The most breath taking harbour entrance has to be Cienfuegos with it's narrow almost unnavigable entrance. Larger ships would be denied. The attached map will show what I mean.

 

http://i999.photobucket.com/albums/af114/Yarkerhill/carte-cienfuegos.png

 

Because we can see the bridge activity from our deck I was interested to see if Pilots ever in fact handle the vessel. In most instances it is the Captain under the verbal advise of the Pilot (if in fact needed...) But for this port the Pilot was at the control. The inlet is so narrow and the channel so irregular, one move calls for a complete turn to starboard. And as you pass through the inlet you are on the front doorsteps of resident homes hearing TV sounds, dogs barking, etc. Then as you exit the inlet the vista of the entire basin comes up on you. Magnificent.

 

Last season this occurred very early in the morning with a departure after dark. That was fantastic but somewhat scary with searchlights up full. This year he arrived well after sun up and departed well before dark. Obviously tides play a big part in this so times may change again. Nonetheless it is one arrival you should not miss and if we are aboard together then please contact us so that you can view it all from our vantage point.

Edited by ONT-CA
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burm

burm

Posted
Posted
The most breath taking harbour entrance has to be Cienfuegos with it's narrow almost unnavigable entrance. Larger ships would be denied. The attached map will show what I mean.

 

http://i999.photobucket.com/albums/af114/Yarkerhill/carte-cienfuegos.png

 

Because we can see the bridge activity from our deck I was interested to see if Pilots ever in fact handle the vessel.

 

We can see that much bridge activity from our deck?

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ONT-CA

ONT-CA

Posted
Posted
We can see that much bridge activity from our deck?

 

Yes, as explained when at the furthers point of the deck in the far corner of the bow you can look up and see a portion of the bridge, that portion that is used when delicate manouvering of the vessel is required. It is controlled by two small levers no larger than 8" in hight. When occupied, those on the bridge will be far too busy guiding the ship to even notice that you are below watching them.

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getting there

getting there

Posted
Posted

Hi all!

 

I've just caught up on this thread. Perfect reading for a rainy Vancouver afternoon.

 

My husband and I have just booked the March 6th departure from Montego Bay. My suster and her husband are joining us so we know that there will be at least four of us the ship! :)

 

It has given me some comfort to see that there are some 2nd timers. My expectations are not high about the ship itself. Our motivation is the interesting itinerary. As well, we want to get there before the embargo is lifted.

 

Is there anyone else from the board who is sailing at this time?

 

As we are embarking from Montego Bay, we only have the port day in Havana. Any suggestions on "must sees"?

 

Thanks in advance. Carol

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retiring soon

retiring soon

Posted
Posted

Hi again!

 

Ron ~ thanks so much for the explanation. Wow that entrance to Cienfuegos is not to be missed! We're getting on Feb 20 at Montego Bay for a week, will you be on at the same time?

 

getting there ~ welcome to the thread!:D Looks like still over 100 cabins available on your sailing so it shouldn't be too crowded. In January there were only 300 pax on board & it felt like our own private yacht. It really is a nice little ship but you're right the itinerary is the draw & the time is right!

We do have a long day in Havana so you can do a lot, just depends what you're interested in.

 

Ciao

 

~ Jo ~ :)

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p598738

p598738

Posted
Posted
HI all!

 

Kerri ~ welcome to the thread!:D Just 63 pages to read to get caught up!

You're just 3 doors away from us. We're in an XE & had the same (6212) last time on starboard which we really liked. I sat on my sofa & could see Dolphins or large fish jumping out of the water right from it!

 

I usually choose right/starboard in all modes of transport, bus, plane or ships as I think you get a better view eg going down to the islands, land would be to the right.

 

Steamboatin ~ sorry to hear about your problem on deck 4 but we had nothing like that on deck 6. The ship's not fancy but it is nice & for me the itinerary is what counts. I found the food good & the entertainment great.

 

p598738 ~ which week are you going in Feb.? Will you be on with the 3 of us?

 

Have a great week. Guess Ron should be back soon & maybe he'll tell us more.

 

~ Jo ~ :)

 

Boarding Feb 6 in Montego Bay

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ONT-CA

ONT-CA

Posted
Posted (edited)
Hi again!

Ron ~ thanks so much for the explanation. Wow that entrance to Cienfuegos is not to be missed! We're getting on Feb 20 at Montego Bay for a week, will you be on at the same time? ~ Jo ~ :)

 

Jo, we board our B2B on Feb. 23rd and although we will meet aboard we will not be there when you visit your first port, Cienfuegos, on the 21st. As burm precedes us that week, perhaps they would be amenable to share the great vantage point with you. Of course the ETA is a serious factor. Failing that, just below on Deck 5 Forward there is a good location to catch the entrance. Hope you get to see it. You are this close;

 

http://i999.photobucket.com/albums/af114/Yarkerhill/Jagua-1.jpg

Edited by ONT-CA
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burm

burm

Posted
Posted
Jo, we board our B2B on Feb. 23rd and although we will meet aboard we will not be there when you visit your first port, Cienfuegos, on the 21st. As burm precedes us that week, perhaps they would be amenable to share the great vantage point with you. Of course the ETA is a serious factor. Failing that, just below on Deck 5 Forward there is a good location to catch the entrance. Hope you get to see it. You are this close;

 

http://i999.photobucket.com/albums/af114/Yarkerhill/Jagua-1.jpg

 

We can be bribed. :D

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zebraprintsky

zebraprintsky

Posted
Posted

Since I booked thru a travel agent and not thru the website, I also had to book my excursions thru my travel agent (who also happens to be my best friend). I booked the Cuba Life, as well as the short Santiago tour. I have previously booked a full day tour of Havana thru a tour company in Cuba and I am so excited for that !

 

Everything is booked and ready to go, I leave for Jamaica in 48 hours and I cannot wait to surprise the hubby !!!

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Guy on the right

Guy on the right

Posted
Posted

Dear Ron and all.

 

I must apologize as I was the one in the shorts, the guy on the right. My pants were at the cleaners and I completely let you and the other passengers down. I did catch hell but not by “Mr. Big” but by an employee of Cuba Cruise Canada whom I thanked.

 

Neither Dugald (the guy on the left) or myself (Craig) were at the beach BBQ and as this was the end of the TA cruise and not the start of Cuba Cruise, we did not know there would be a VIP meal. I can assure you that there won’t be on Cuba Cruise which started in Havana on Monday with Canadian dollars on board as well as Canadian circus performers and many of last year’s crew joining us.

 

It is unfortunate we didn't get to meet. I do spend a lot of time with passengers. The very first day on board I met Peter from Ottawa who was frustrated that there was no coffee available at 4:30 when he awoke. He was a very early riser. The next day and for the rest of Cuba Cruise coffee will be on deck 9 at 4:00 AM.

 

Cuba Cruise has always been a joint venture with Canadian and Cypriot owners. The Celestial name is a rebranding and no change in ownership has occurred. Neither has our crews commitment to providing great service to our guests. They are very special to us.

 

We are proud to bring Canadians to see more of Cuba and we look forward to provide the same great cruise and service that we had last year and will ensure that the special relationship and beacon of hope that the Cristal represents in port will continue with the beautiful Cubans.

 

Dugald, myself and 30 friends will be on the December 29th embarkation from Havana and if anyone reading this is onboard please say hello. We spend a lot of time by the pool on the port side.

 

Thank you Ron for making me aware of this and the passengers feelings.

 

 

Craig Marshall

Director

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